Board of Trustees

H.E. Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi
President of Egypt

Egypt

Sameh Hassan Shoukry
Minister of Foreign Affairs

Egypt

Sameh Shoukry, Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs, graduated from the Faculty of Law, Ain Shams University in 1975. Ever since he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1976 as an Attache, he assumed a number of diplomatic posts. In 1978, he became the Third Secretary at the Egyptian Embassy in London. He then became the Second Secretary to the Cabinet of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1982, and served as the First Secretary at the Egyptian Embassy in Buenos Aires in 1984. From 1988 to 1990, he served as the Counselor to the Cabinet of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. From 1990 to 1994, he became part of Egypt’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations. In 1994, he was the Director of the Department of the United States and Canada at the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in 1995, he became Secretary for Information to the Egyptian Presidency. Sameh Shoukry received his first ambassadorship in 1999 when he became Ambassador and Egypt’s Representative to the international organizations in Vienna. From 2003 to 2004, he served as an Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister and Director of the Department of Protocol in the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He then served as an Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister and Cabinet Chief for the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2004 to 2005. From 2005 to 2008, he was an Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Egypt to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva. From 2008 to 2012, he served as Egypt’s Ambassador to the United States of America. He was Sherpa to the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit in 2012, and was Sherpa to The Hague Nuclear Security Summit in 2014. Shoukry became the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs in June 2014.

Ayman Ashour
Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research

Egypt

Ayman Ashour was Deputy Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research for Universities Affairs, prior to assuming the position of Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research. He previously worked as the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University, and he is a Professor of Architecture, Urban Planning, and Housing; in addition to Chairman of the Board of Directors of Archplan, a consulting firm he established in 1985. Ashour began his academic career in 1982 when he was appointed as a Teaching Assistant at the Faculty of Engineering, and held different positions until he became Professor of Architectural Design and Urban Planning in 2005. He worked as Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Engineering for Postgraduate Studies and Research, Ain Shams University, then Dean of the Faculty of Engineering in October 2014. During his academic and administrative career, he developed engineering and architectural educational programs to keep pace with global systems through international partnerships with the most prestigious universities to grant double degrees; in addition to linking scientific research, projects, and innovations conducted by students with the requirements of the country’s development plans, and contributing through applied research in the development of the industrial sector and thus economic development in order to achieve the vision of the state by 2030.

Nevine Al-Kilany
Minister of Culture

Egypt

Nevine Al-Kilany graduated in 1989, and obtained a PhD from the Academy of Arts in 1995. She also held different positions at the Academy from Professor to Head of the Criticism Department of Kinetic Performance Arts until she was appointed Dean of the Higher Institute of Artistic Criticism at the Academy of Arts till 2022. In addition to her academic career, she also worked in the field of public relations for the Opera House and the Opera Creativity Center, where she held the Presidency of the Cultural Development Fund Sector in January 2016, and her secondment was renewed for another year. She has been a member of the Music, Opera, and Ballet Committee of the Supreme Council of Culture since December 2015, and she previously issued a number of publications, critical articles, and periodical articles on the arts of opera, music, and ballet in the Egyptian Arts magazine. She also served as Head of the Cultural Sector of the Arab Women’s Union in the League of Arab States in 2018, and was a member of the Board of Directors of Egypt’s Public Libraries at the Ministry of Culture from 2017 to 2018, a member of the Board of Directors of the Cultural Development Fund at the Ministry of Culture from 2017 to 2018, and Head of the Cultural Development Fund Sector at the Ministry of Culture from 2015 to 2016.

Mohammed Taher Al-Sherif
Governor of Alexandria

Egypt

Mohammed Al-Sherif was born on 18 August 1961 in Cairo. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Law and a Bachelor’s degree in Police Science on 30 June 1983. He worked in the field of crime investigation for four years, and in the field of political security for 31 years. He worked as an Assistant Director of the Ports Security Sector of the Red Sea for nine years, in addition to his work in Crisis Management. He was appointed Governor of Alexandria on 27 November 2019. General Al-Sherif held several important positions throughout his career. He was Head of the General Department for National Security in Alexandria, Head of the Security Directorate of Alexandria, and Assistant Minister of Giza Security Sector. He was honored at many events for his remarkable achievements, including being honored as a Distinguished Police Officer at the Police Officers’ Day celebrations in 2003. He received the Order of Distinction from the President of the Republic on 25 January 2017.

Abdelaziz Konsowa
President of Alexandria University

Egypt

Abdelaziz Konsowa is Professor of Environmental Engineering at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering. He held the position of Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, then Vice-President of the University for Community Service and Environmental Development Affairs, then Governor of Alexandria. He had many contributions as a consultant with different companies and major industrial entities locally and regionally in the field of water desalination and treatment using nanotechnology and ultra-high capacity membranes. He has published research in advanced international scientific periodicals and journals. He also participated in the design and implementation of many projects for desalination and water treatment plants at the local and regional levels. In addition to his participation in the European Union program for the development of non-conventional water resources in western Alexandria, he participated in the preparation of the Third World Water Development Report in cooperation with the UNESCO World Water Assessment Program in 2009. He also has many achievements in developing the educational system and student activities, including the conclusion of many agreements for joint degrees between the Faculty of Engineering and advanced American, English, and European universities that are higher on the global rankings, as well as the development of the infrastructure and technology for the educational process, and the development of college laboratories to serve the educational process and research purposes. He won many awards, including the University Award for Scientific Encouragement in 2008 and the Engineers Syndicate Award for Excellence in Engineering in 2002.

Hani Azer

Egypt

Member as of 2023 and (2020–2022)

Hani Azer is an Egyptian civil engineer. He was born in 1948 in Tanta, Egypt, and moved to Cairo for High School and University. In 1973, after earning BSc degree from the Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University, he moved to Germany for post-graduate studies in Civil Engineering in Bochum. He became the Chief Engineer of Germany’s fourth largest train station in Berlin, the Berlin Hauptbahnhof. Azer was honored by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the inauguration of the Berlin Hauptbahnhof, and received one of Berlin’s most respected distinctions: the Verdienstorden des Landes Berlin (Merit of the State of Berlin), for outstanding service to the state. He was later honored by the Egyptian Republic. Azer previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from 2020 to 2022, before once again joining the Board in 2023.

Farouk El-Okdah

Egypt

Member as of 2023 and (2016–2021)

Farouk El-Okdah was the Chair of the BOT Executive Committee of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. He was the Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt from 2003 to 2013. He obtained a Bachelor of Commerce in 1965 and a Master’s Degree in Accounting in 1975 from Cairo University. He received an MBA in 1981 and a PhD in 1983 from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He has extensive banking experience. In 2003, he was the Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of the National Bank of Egypt. From 1983 to 2002, he worked with the Irving Trust Company, which later became the Bank of New York, where he was the Assistant Vice-President for the Middle East Division and later Vice-President and Africa District Manager. From 1997 to 2002, he was the Managing Director of the International Company for Leasing (INCOLEASE). From 1978 to 1982, he was the Instructor of Accounting and Finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania that nominated him in 1978 to serve as a Consultant for the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group. El-Okdah has been a Member of the Board of Directors of Egypt Air since 1998. He served as an Advisor to the Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) from 1998 to 2001. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Federation of Egyptian Banks. Previously he served on the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from 2016 to 2021, before once again joining the Board in 2023.

Mohamed Salmawy

Egypt

Member as of 2023 and (2017–2022)

Mohamed Salmawy is a leading Egyptian novelist, playwright, editor, poet, journalist, and political commentator. From 2005 to 2015, he served as the President of the Egyptian Writers Union and Secretary General of the General Union of Arab Writers. He earned a BA in English Literature from Cairo University and a Higher Diploma in Shakespearean Theater from the University of Oxford, England. He also obtained an MA in Mass Communication from the American University in Cairo. Salmawy was appointed as a Teacher of English Language and Literature at the Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, in 1966. He worked at Al-Ahram newspaper as an Editor of Foreign Affairs in 1970, and in 1988, he was appointed as the Deputy Minister of Culture for External Relations. He was appointed as the Editor-in-Chief of Al-Ahram Weekly newspaper in 1991, and was later appointed as the Editor-in-Chief of Al-Ahram Hebdo newspaper. He was also the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Al-Masry Al-Youm (Egypt Independent) newspaper, and then became the Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper in 2014. Salmawy received several prestigious awards, including the French Order of Arts and Letters in 1995, the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic in 2006, the Order of the Crown of the Royal Belgian King Albert II in 2008, and the State Merit Award for Literature in 2012. Among his most famous novels is the Butterfly Wings, which was recognized as a prophetic novel of the Egyptian revolution in 2011 and an extended allegory of Egypt’s modern experience of authoritarian rule, and explored the fractures and challenges of a society at the moment of revolutionary transformation. Mohamed Salmawy previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from 2017 to 2022, before once again joining it in 2023.

Magdi Yacoub

Egypt

Member as of 2023, (2014–2016), and (2017–2019)

Sir Magdi Yacoub is Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, and Founder and Director of Research at the Harefield Heart Science Centre (Magdi Yacoub Institute). He graduated from Cairo University Medical School in 1957, trained in London and held an Assistant Professorship at the University of Chicago. Sir Magdi Yacoub is also the Founder and Director of the Magdi Yacoub Research Network which has created the Qatar Cardiovascular Research Center, in collaboration with Qatar Foundation and Hamad Medical Corporation. He has been a British Health Foundation Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery for over 20 years. He was the Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Harefield Hospital from 1969 to 2001 and Royal Brompton Hospital from 1986 to 2001. He was knighted for his services in medicine and surgery in 1991, and he was awarded Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 1998 and Fellowship of the Royal Society in 1999. He was presented with a lifetime outstanding achievement award in recognition of his contribution to medicine by the Secretary of State for Health in the same year. Sir Magdi Yacoub has an active interest in global healthcare delivery with particular focus on developing programs in Egypt, the Gulf Region, Mozambique, Ethiopia and Jamaica. He is Founder and President of the Chain of Hope charity for treating children with correctable cardiac conditions from war-torn and developing countries, and establishing training and research programs in local cardiac units. Sir Magdi Yacoub previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from 2014 to 2016, and from 2017 to 2019, before re-joining it in 2023.

Mohamed Benaissa

Morocco

Member as of 2022

Mohamed Benaissa is a Moroccan politician who was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Morocco from 1999 to 2007. Benaissa was born on 3 January 1937 in Asilah, Morocco. He received a Bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Minnesota in 1963, which also awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2007. After studying at Columbia University, Benaissa went on to serve the United Nations and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization for approximately eleven years, first as Press Attaché to the UN Moroccan Mission in New York (1965), then as Information Officer at the UN headquarters in New York and in Addis Ababa (1965–1967), Regional Information Adviser for Africa at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization in Accra, Ghana (1967–1971), Communications Adviser for the FAO in Rome (1961–1974), Director of the Information Division for the FAO (1974–1976), and finally as Assistant-Secretary General at the UN World Food Conference (1974–1975). Benaissa returned to Morocco to become member of Parliament for the city of Asilah from 1977 to 1983, and then Mayor of Asilah in 1984, a position to which he has been reelected three times up to 2010. From 1977 to 1985 he served as Chief Editor to Al Mithaq (Arabic) and Al Maghrib (French) dailies, the newspapers of the Rassemblement National des Indépendants (RNI), party to which he then belonged. Benaissa was the Minister of Culture from 1985 to 1992, and the Moroccan Ambassador to the United States from 1993 to 1999. In April 1999, King Hassan II appointed Benaissa to the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs just three months before the former’s death.

Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu

Turkey

Member as of 2022 and (2014–2019)

Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu is a Turkish academician and diplomat. He is a member of the Turkish Parliament, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and the 9th Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) from 2004 to 2013. Being at the helm of the second largest and sole intergovernmental international organization representing the whole Muslim world (57 countries), İhsanoğlu took major steps bringing about a significant shift of paradigm in the OIC. He was the Founding Director General of the Research Center for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA) in Istanbul for 25 years, and the first Professor and Founding Head of the Department of the History of Science at Istanbul University. He has also taught and lectured in many leading universities in Europe and the USA, and published books, articles, and papers in different languages on science, the history of science, and relations between the Muslim World and the Western World. He was awarded medals from kings and presidents, and has received honorary doctorates from a number of universities around the world. İhsanoğlu was also a presidential candidate in the 2014 elections in Turkey and won 38.5% of the total vote. He previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from 2014 to 2019, before once again joining the Board in 2022.

Mai Al Khalifa

Bahrain

Member as of 2022

H.E. Shaikha Mai Al Khalifa is a leading figure in the Arab culture and art scenes. She has spearheaded national efforts to develop the cultural infrastructure in the Kingdom of Bahrain for heritage conservation and the growth of sustainable tourism. President of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, H.E. Shaikha Mai is the foremost public expert in the field, holding the unique portfolios of the Ministry for Culture and Information, and then the Ministry for Culture. As the Founder of the Shaikh Ebrahim bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Center for Culture and Research, and Chair of its Board of Trustees since 2002, she works actively to foster culture and preserve the traditional architecture of Bahrain. Amongst her myriad achievements have been the listing of the inscriptions of the Qal’at al-Bahrain, the Pearling: Testimony of an Island Economy, and Dilmun Burial Mounds as UNESCO World Heritage Sites; in addition to the founding of the Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage, a UNESCO Category 2 Centre. She is also the recipient of the Légion d’Honneur, the Moroccan Order of Ouissam Alaouite (Grand Officer) and the Order of the Italian Star, as well as the First Class Order of Merit from HM King Hamad of Bahrain. She is renowned as a local historian whose work has been published both in Bahrain and internationally.

Yuriko Koike

Japan

Member as of 2022

Yuriko Koike was born on 15 July 1952. She is a Japanese politician who currently serves as the Governor of Tokyo. She graduated from Cairo University (B.A. in Sociology) as the top student in 1976, and was a member of the House of Representatives of Japan from 1993 to 2016 when she resigned to run in the Tokyo gubernatorial election. She was previously the Minister of Defense in the cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, but resigned in August 2007 after only 54 days in office. On 31 July 2016, Koike was elected Governor of Tokyo, the city’s first female Governor, and was re-elected on 5 July 2020 in a landslide, winning 59.7% of the vote.

Serge Lasvignes

France

Member as of 2022

Serge Lasvignes was born in 1954. He is a qualified language and literature teacher, and a former student of the Ecole Nationale d’Administration (ENA), in the Liberté-Egalité-Fraternité class of 1987–1989. He started his career with the Council of State, and was Director of General and International Affairs and Cooperation with the Ministry of National Education, Higher Studies, Research, and Professional Integration (1995–1996), then Director of Legal Affairs with the Ministry of National Education, Higher Studies and Research (1996–1997). He was Director of the Secretariat- General of the Government from 1997 to 2006, and Secretary- General of the Government from 2006 to 2015. In April 2015, Serge Lasvignes became President of the Centre National d’Art et de Culture Georges Pompidou, and Chairperson of the Boards of the Bibliothèque Publique d’Information (BPI), the Institut de Recherche et de Coordination Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM), and the Centre Pompidou-Metz.

Amina Mohamed

Kenya

Member as of 2022

Amina Mohamed is a Kenyan lawyer, diplomat and politician. She previously served as the Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Culture, and Heritage in Kenya. She also served as Chairperson of the International Organization for Migration and the World Trade Organization’s General Council, as well as Assistant Secretary- General and Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program. She served as the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Kenya from May 2013 to February 2018, when President Uhuru Kenyatta, after re-election, moved her to the Education docket. In March 2019, she was appointed to the Ministry of Sports, Culture, and Heritage. She moved to Ukraine on a scholarship to study at the University of Kiev. Amina Mohamed earned a Master of Law (LLM) in International Law, and obtained a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) in International Relations from the University of Oxford.

Louise Moushikiwabo

Rwanda

Member as of 2022

Louise Moushikiwabo has degrees in Languages and Interpretation, University of Delaware, USA. She is an author and public relations executive. She lived in the United States for 22 years, then briefly in Tunisia. She has given numerous television and radio talks on Rwandan issues and collaborated on many award- winning documentary films. She is the co-author of Rwanda Means the Universe (2006), an intergenerational socio-historical memoir, and has contributed many articles to newspapers and online magazines. She obtained the Outstanding Humanitarian Award (2004) from the American University’s School of International Studies. Moushikiwabo is the fourth and current Secretary General of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. In March 2008, she joined the Rwandan Cabinet as Minister of Information, and she previously served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Rwanda from 2009 to 2018. She also served as Government Spokesperson.

Samia Nkrumah

Ghana

Member as of 2022

Samia Yaba Christina Nkrumah is a Ghanaian politician and Chairperson of the Convention People’s Party (CPP). She is the daughter of Kwame Nkrumah, first President of Ghana. Nkrumah is one of the founders of the charity group, Africa Must Unite, which promotes her late father’s vision of a peaceful Africa. On 7 January 2009, She was elected member of Parliament for Jomoro constituency. She was the first woman named Chairperson of the Convention People’s Party and the first woman to head a political party in Ghana. Nkrumah was educated at the School of Oriental and African Studies, where she obtained a Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree in Arabic Studies.

S. Sadagopan

India

Member as of 2022

S. Sadagopan is currently the Director of IIIT-Bangalore, a PhD granting University representing a set of new generation universities started in India in late 90’s with special focus on IT, and one of the first such Institutes. As the first Director of IIIT-Bangalore, he is involved in visioning, planning and executing the growth of this Institute that is counted as one of the premier Institutes in India. He obtained his MS and PhD Degree from Purdue University, USA, in 1979, and BE (Hon) Degree from Madras University, India, in 1973. He had taught at IIT Kanpur (1979–1995), and IIM Bangalore (1995–1999). His research interests include OR, Multi-criteria optimization, Simulation and Enterprise computing. Sadagopan is a Fellow of the UK’s IET (formerly IEE), Computer Society of India and Institution of Engineers (India). He is a Senior member of the IEEE and ACM. Sadagopan’s research work has appeared in several international journals including IEEE Transactions, European J of Operational Research, J of Optimization Theory and Applications, Naval Research Logistics, Simulation and Decision Support Systems. He has won numerous awards that include the Fulbright Fellowship (1995), Champion of Humanity Award of Hindustan Chamber of Commerce (2009), Rotary Honor of Vocational Excellence by Rotary Northwest Bangalore District 3190 (2013), Engineering Watch “Campus Preparedness” Award (2015), and Cisco NDTV Digital Pioneer Award (2016) to name a few.

Abdul Rahman bin Musa’id Al Saud

KSA

Member as of 2022

Abdul Rahman bin Musa’id Al Saud KSA Member as of 2022 HRH Prince Abdul Rahman bin Musa’id Al Saud was born on 18 August 1967. He is a Saudi Arabian businessman, writer, and the former President of Saudi Football Club Al-Hilal. He studied at Paris- Sorbonne University and King Saud University.

Nemat Shafik

UK

Member as of 2022

Dame Nemat Talaat Shafik, DBE, known as Minouche Shafik, is an Egyptian-born British-American economist who served as the Director of the London School of Economics since September 2017. Called the Sheriff of the Markets and the Most Powerful Woman in London, Nemat Shafik became the first-ever Deputy Governor of the Bank of England from August 2014 to February 2017, joining the second-oldest central bank in the world and one of the largest. She was appointed to oversee markets and banking for reshaping risk management practices, stabilizing the U.K.’s dropping inflation levels, and overseeing the bank’s international surveillance. Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Shafik traveled to the United States for undergraduate studies, and later earned a Master’s and Doctorate in Economics from the London School of Economics and Oxford University, respectively. After becoming the World Bank’s youngest- ever Vice-President at 36, she was appointed Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund.

Moufid Shehab

Egypt

Member as of 2022

Moufid Shehab is an international law expert and a Professor of International Law at Cairo University. He was appointed President of Cairo University, and Minister of Higher Education. He also served as Minister of Parliamentary and Legal Affairs in Egypt. Shehab received his BA in Law from Alexandria University in 1956, followed by a PhD in Law from Paris in 1963. Prof. Moufid Shehab was granted the Nile Award in Social Sciences in 2019.

The Late Marianna Vardinoyannis

Greece

Member as of 2022 and (2001–2008)

Marianna Vardinoyannis was a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador promoting programs for the protection of children. She was also the Founder and President of the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation, and Founder and President of the Elpida Association of Friends of Children with Cancer. Inspired by motherhood, she built up an extensive record of humanitarian work for the benefit of children and disadvantaged social groups in Greece and abroad. She also worked on issues of peace, education, health, and cultural heritage. She was a Board member of the Mentor International against Drugs, the Light from Africa Foundation, and other organizations. Vardinoyannis funded the establishment of the Alexandria Center for Hellenistic Studies at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. In addition, she contributed to supporting UNESCO’s education and culture programs in several regions around the world, as well as several schools in Greece. In the span of 25 years, she had kept fighting pediatric cancer through the Elpida Association. More than 780 children from Greece and the Mediterranean basin have been cured of cancer. She obtained a BA in History of Art and in Economics, MPhil in Archaeology, and Honorary Doctorates in Law, Philosophy, and Human Studies. She also served as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from 2001 to 2008, before re-joining it in 2022. Ms. Marianna Vardinoyannis died on 24 July 2023.

Leslie Weir

Canada

Member as of 2022

Leslie Weir is a Canadian Librarian, one of the founding architects of Scholars Portal, and former President of the Canadian Association of Research Libraries. Ms. Weir was the University Librarian at the University of Ottawa from 2003 to 2018. On 27 May 2019, she was appointed Librarian and Archivist of Canada, effective 30 August 2019. Ms. Weir is the first woman to become Librarian and Archivist of Canada, since the National Library of Canada and the National Archives of Canada were merged toform Library and Archives Canada in 2004. She was born and raised in Montreal. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Canadian History from Concordia University in 1976, and a Master’s in Library Science from McGill University in 1979. She joined the University of Ottawa in 1992, and was its University Librarian from 2003 to 2018. During her tenure as University Librarian, she founded the School of Information Studies in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ottawa where she was also a cross-appointed Professor. She was a member of the Board of the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN), from its inception until 2009, and again from 2011 to 2015. She served as President of Canadiana.org between 2012 and 2016 where she oversaw the introduction of the Heritage Project to digitize, and make openly accessible some 60 million heritage archival images. She was also President of the Canadian Association of Research Libraries from 2007 to 2009, and President of the Ontario Library Association in 2017.

Ana Olga Hausse Mocumbi

Mozambique

Member as of 2020

Ana Olga Hausse Mocumbi is a Mozambican cardiologist and researcher. Her achievements include using high technology in the study of neglected diseases in poor rural settings in Africa. She is a member of the Pulmonary Vasculature Research Institute, Pan African Society of Cardiology. She was Vice- President of Mozambique Medical Association from 2004 to 2007. She is also a Doctor of Medicine, Eduardo Mondlane University, Maputo (1992) and Doctor of Philosophy, Imperial College, London (2009). She was born on 16 August 1967 in Maputo, Mozambique.

Miguel Ángel Moratinos

Spain

Member as of 2020

Miguel Ángel Moratinos is an experienced diplomat and politician. Since 7 January 2019, Moratinos has been the UN High-Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations. He was the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation from 2004 to 2010. He was born on 8 June 1951 in Madrid. Moratinos holds a degree in Law and Political Science. He served as Director General of the Institute for Cooperation with the Arab World (1991–1993), Director General of Foreign Policy for Africa and the Middle East (1993–1996), and EU Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process (1996–2003). He was elected member of Spain’s Parliament for Córdoba in 2004 and re-elected in 2008. He holds a number of honorific titles, including Knight of the Order of Civil Merit, Officer of the Order of Isabel the Catholic Queen, and Commander of Civil Merit.

Mary Doreen Archer

England

Member as of 2019

Mary Doreen Archer joined as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in 2019. She was born on 22 December 1944, in Epsom, Surrey, England. She attended Cheltenham Ladies’ College, before studying Chemistry at St. Anne’s College, Oxford, and Physical Chemistry at Imperial College London. In the mid-1970s, she was appointed to the Board of Directors of the International Solar Energy Society. Between 1976 and 1986, she was a Lecturer in Chemistry at Newnham and Trinity Colleges in Cambridge. From 1984 to 1991, she was a Director of the Fitzwilliam Museum Trust in Cambridge. From 1988 to 2000, she was Chairperson of the National Energy Foundation. She later became its President. Since January 2015, she has been Chair of the Board of Trustees of the National Science Museum Group. She is also President of the UK Solar Energy Society. Mary Archer is a Companion of the Energy Institute and was awarded the Institute’s Melchett Medal in 2002. She was Chairperson of Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for ten years until 2012. Mary Archer was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honors for Services to the National Health Service. She remains a Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge, and is a Visiting Professor at Imperial College London. She has been an Honorary Fellow of St. Anne’s College since 2013.

Justin Yifu Lin

China

Member as of 2018

Justin Yifu Lin received his PhD in Economics from the University of Chicago in 1986. He served as the Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President of the World Bank—the first economist from a developing country to hold these posts—from June 2008 to June 2012. Prior to assuming said positions, Dr. Lin served for 15 years as the Founding Director of and a Professor at the China Centre for Economic Research (CCER) at Peking University. He authored 18 books, including The China Miracle: Development Strategy and Economic Reform, Economic Development and Transition: Thought, Strategy, and Viability, and Demystifying the Chinese Economy. He published more than 100 articles in refereed international journals and collected volumes on history, development, and transition. Dr. Lin is a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy and a Fellow of the World Academy of Sciences for the Developing World. In 2007, he gave the Marshall Lectures at Cambridge and, in 2011, the Simon Kuznets Lecture at Yale and the UNU Wider Annual Lecture in Mozambique— the first ever to be held in a developing country.

Mikhail Piotrovsky

Russia

Member as of 2018

Mikhail Borisovich Piotrovsky is the Director of the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg. He attended Cairo University from 1965 to 1966 and graduated with honors from the Oriental Faculty of Leningrad State University, specializing in Arabic Studies, in 1967. He was a Research Assistant at the Leningrad branch of the Institute for Oriental Studies from 1967 until 1991. Dr. Piotrovsky is an academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a member of the Russian Academy of Arts, President of the Union of Museums in Russia, President of the Worldwide Club of St. Petersburg, and Chairperson of the Board of the European University in St. Petersburg. He received various national and international awards, including the Netherlands Order of Orange- Nassau (1996), the Russian Order of Honor (1997), the French Order of the Légion d’Honneur (1998 and 2004), the Swedish Order of the Northern Star (1999), the Order for Merit to the Italian Republic (2000 and 2004), the Order of Saint Mesrop, Armenian Apostle Church (2000), the Order of Yaroslav the Wise, Ukraine (2003), the Presidential Prize in the Field of Art and Literature, Russia (2003), the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (2004), the Order of Service to the Fatherland, Russia (2004), the Order of Honor Al- Fahr, the Council of Muftis of Russia (2005), the Order of the Finish Lion (2005), the Order of Sun, Japan (2007), the Silver Medal of Amsterdam (2009), Woodrow Wilson Award, USA (2009), and the Order of the Crown, Belgium (2011). In 2011, Dr. Piotrovsky was awarded the title of Honored Citizen of Saint Petersburg.